Stress Vs. Burnout; What Is The Difference?
Do I have to work 24/7 forever? I can’t get my to-do list finished no matter what.
Be careful with yourself. While stress is a normal part of life, how you react to your demands and stressors matter. Stress is not just in your mind either. There is a strong connection between your worry thoughts circling around, “ruminating” and your body’s response to those.
Chronic activation of the stress response in our body releases cortisol which can affect the inflammatory response and metabolic issues. This can lead to tension, headaches, GI issues, depersonalization or anxiety attacks.
Burnout happens when your system is so overloaded that you can no longer function. Cortisol levels have flooded to the point where your body and mind collapse. You may find yourself losing control of your temper or not being able to get out of bed at all. Burnout can lead to needing to take a medical leave in order to recover.
But I Have So Much Work To Do!
Working day and night is not the solution. You risk burnout. Part of the solution to managing a very heavy workload may be reframing the situation. Think of it this way: If you were ever truly done with everything on your work to do list, then where is your job? Like laundry, if you were ever truly done washing and folding, that would mean you can no longer wear your clothes.
You may object saying that your boss is constantly asking for updates and task completions. Yet is there any evidence they would actually fire you if you are not constantly up to date? You risk burnout if this is the approach you adopt.
How can you help yourself? Keeping structure around your work hours is paramount. Our work culture since the pandemic in particular has blurred the boundaries between work and home, and it is important to reset these.
Strategies
Taking short breaks throughout the day is important. You can always squeeze in a few 5 minute breaks to do a body scan, focus on your breathing for 10 breaths, or do a short mindfulness based meditation through apps like Calm or Headspace.
Nutrition and exercise are both crucial. Daily exercise doesn’t have to take a long time. Even 15 minutes of getting your heartrate up helps. Try to keep a good structure around your self care time and don’t compromise on this.
Self compassion is important. Whether you talk aloud to yourself, which can be powerful, or mentally give yourself a little pat on the back for taking a break, how you address yourself emotionally makes a difference.
You do not need a harsh punitive critic in order to accomplish things at work. I sometimes hear statements like: “I owe my success to how hard I’ve been on myself”. To which I respond, “there is nothing wrong with having high expectations of yourself, or even being upset with yourself when you don’t work hard, but HOW that voice sounds matter”. There is a difference between being angry with yourself from a loving perspective: “I know I can do better than this”, versus from a punitive perspective: “I’m such a failure and a loser”.
Focus On What You Can Control
This part is important. Part of the reason for burnout is often that you try to control all aspects external to you. But focus and concentration starts with how you control the internal part. Go slow in order to be effective. You can always control your heart rate and breath. You can take a moment to reflect briefly, whether a beautiful thing outside your window, or a pleasant thought or memory, then go back to what you were doing.
You can control self care. You take care of your car engine so it works consistently. Take the same approach with your own mind and body. Self care is a philosophy. If you’re struggling to manage stress, therapy can help. Visit my counseling for stress page to learn more about my approach.